Books for Prep | |
 - Outstanding single sourceThis was my primary review source for the boards and I scored >98th percentile. It is as if there are questions from the boards taken straight out of this book. You should know this book inside and out. Rating:  - Definitive Neurological surgery board reviewAn excellent book for my residents to read,think,answer and read again.I would recommend the book to any resident in Neurological surgery as a supplement. More single best responses would be nice if it could be added in the next edition. Rating: - Extremely high-yield reviewHaving taken (and passed) the boards three times now I can definitely say that this is a very high-yield review text. While the information is densely presented, it is also very clear and concise. I felt that I understood the material very well after reading it here. The questions at the end of each chapter are very representative of the subject matter/level of complexity on the actual test. This book compares favorably with Dr.Citow's book (either will do and it is probably not necessary to read both) and is probably better than the Sturm/Forget text. I would recommend supplementing this book with one Path slides (esp. CNS tumors) text and one imaging text (either Jinkins or Yock or Castillo depending on how much time you have. Osborn's Diagnostic Neuroradiology can be helpful as well). Two times through each of these plus a quick third time through the Moore book highlighted material and you should pass easily. Rating:  - This is no CitowThis seems like the ideal book, doesn't it? Definitive, paragraphs, pictures and questions. I wanted something that flowed. I couldn't bear to look at another page from CNBR. When I found it online, I couldn't wait for it to show up, I even paid extra for shipping. What a let down. It is by no means an easy read. It is basically CNBR in paragraph form, the difference is CNBR actually flows better than this book. The key difference between the two is the quality of pictures, which is far better than CNBR (and probably accounts for the hefty price- $175). Still CNBR pictures are embedded into the text, all the color photos in this book are thrown into the middle like an atlas section. Small detail, but its nice to have the picture in front of you while you are reading instead of flipping back and forth. Finally, if I were going to write a board review book with questions, I would write multiple choice questions not the short answer format. I'll keep the book for the pictures (expensive atlas) but I am back to CNBR for content. Not sure this book adds much. The best thing about this book is the title. They sure got me with it. Rating:  - Hardly definitive or comprehensiveFrom the perspective of having taken the boards this past weekend, I am grateful that I did not use this as my definitive source. I was initially drawn to this text because it was prose instead of outline form (Citow). The authors of this work have yet to master the concept of a paragraph. The information is presented as one relentless fact after another without any form of cohesion. Some topics are covered well, but the majority hardly cover the material with the depth needed to answer questions on the boards. The 175 questions are not multiple choice, but rather short answer. They are of very little worth. The other reviews to this book I find interesting because of their timing. This book was released this past year, with the boards only this past weekend, I am circumspect how these reviewers could possibly recommend this book for board review, if this past weekend represents the first seating of the exam since its publication. Buyer beware. The absence of this book in the neurosurgery resident's library will not impact their board score in a deleterious manner, in fact, it may improve it. page 1 of 2
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